Buddhism Test

Question 1

Buddha

Answer 1

Siddhartha Gautama and all others who have by their own insight attained perfect enlightenment

Question 2

Middle Way

Answer 2

A basic Buddhist teaching that rejects both the pleasure of sensual indulgence and the self-denial of asceticism, focusing on a practical approach to spiritual attainment.

Question 3

nirvana

Answer 3

The ultimate goal of all Buddhists, is the extinction of desire and any sense of individual selfhood, resulting in liberation from samsara and its limiting conditions.

Question 4

sangha (assemblage)

Answer 4

The Buddhist community of monks and nuns

Question 5

Dharma

Answer 5

The teachings of the Buddha

Question 6

Pali

Answer 6

An ancient language of India, similar to Sanskrit and used in the writing of the earliest Buddhist texts

Question 7

Three Marks of Existence

Answer 7

Characteristics that summarize the changing nature of reality: anatta (no-self), anicca (impermanence), and dukkha (suffering.

Question 8

Anatta (no-self)

Answer 8

The Buddhist doctrine denying a permanent self

Question 9

Anicca (impermanence)

Answer 9

The Buddhist doctrine that all existent things are constantly changing

Question 10

Five Percepts

Answer 10

The basic moral requirements that are binding for all Buddhists

Question 11

Four Noble Truths

Answer 11

The central teachings of Buddhism:
To live is to experience suffering
Suffering is caused by desire
The cessation of suffering can be achieved
The solution is the Noble Eightfold Path

Question 12

dukkha (suffering, frustration)

Answer 12

First of the Four Noble Truths; the basic Buddhist insight that suffering is part of the human condition

Question 13

Tanha (desire)

Answer 13

The second of the Four Noble Truths, selfish desire, which causes dukkha

Question 14

Noble Eightfold Path

Answer 14

The fourth of the Four Noble Truths; defines the basic practices of Buddhism that leads to Nirvana

Question 15

arhat

Answer 15

One who has become enlightened; the ideal type for Theravada Buddhism

Question 16

Mahayana (The Great Vehicle)

Answer 16

the largest of Buddhism’s three divisions encompasses a variety of forms, including those that emphasize devotion and prayer to the Buddhas and bodhisattvas.

Question 16

Theravada (the way of the elders)

Answer 16

A prevalent form of Buddhism in Cambodia, Burma, Sri Lanka, etc. Focuses on the earliest texts and emphasizes monastic lifestyle

Question 17

bodhisattvas

Answer 17

Future Buddhas

Question 18

Vajrayana (The vehicle of the diamond)

Answer 18

prevalent form of Buddhism in Tibet; emphasizes the harnessing of sensual energies to attain nirvana.

Question 19

mandalas (circles)

Answer 19

patterned icons that visually excite; used in Vajrayana Buddhism to enhance meditation

Question 20

mudras

Answer 20

choreographed hand movements used in the rituals of Vajrayana Buddhism.

Question 21

mantras

Answer 21

phrases or syllables chanted to evoke a deity or to enhance meditation; used in Hinduism and Buddhism, especially in Vajrayana

Question 22

Dalai Lama

Answer 22

the spiritual leader of Vajrayana Buddhism believed to be an incarnation of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshevara.